No doubt the same may be said of all professions. They are all conspiracies against the laity.

-George Bernard Shaw, Author2

Like many others before him, Celso Lima Mejia learned the hard way that a professional license does not guarantee basic competence.3 After Guatemalan rebels kidnapped Mr. Mejia during the country's civil war, he fled to the United States with his family.4 Mejia paid attorney Miguel Gadda thousands of dollars for assistance with an asylum claim.5 Although he had hoped for a green card, Mr. Mejia received a deportation order instead.6

Consumers often lack useful information about professionals before they hire them. …